Thursday, January 27, 2011

Cumming on Coming Out (AKA Chamberlain's Dilemma, Part III)

In a recent interview with The Advocate, Richard Chamberlain stirred up controversy with his statement, "There’s still a tremendous amount of homophobia in our culture. It’s regrettable, it’s stupid, it’s heartless, and it’s immoral, but there it is. For an actor to be working is a kind of miracle, because most actors aren’t, so it’s just silly for a working actor to say, 'Oh, I don’t care if anybody knows I’m gay' — especially if you’re a leading man. Personally, I wouldn’t advise a gay leading man–type actor to come out... Despite all the wonderful advances that have been made, it’s still dangerous for an actor to talk about that in our extremely misguided culture."

Then Rupert Everett weighed in on the subject, agreeing with Chamberlain: "The fact is that you could not be, and still cannot be, a 25-year-old homosexual trying to make it in the British film business or the American film business or even the Italian film business."

I blogged about the controversy at the time here, writing: "The advice... is essentially selfish, placing one's career above all other concerns. And it is short-sighted. Only by coming out does someone contribute to that change in our culture... Coming out is never the wrong decision to make. Living in the closet, living a lie, exacts a toll that no one should have to pay."

Recently, Glee's Jane Lynch agreed with Chamberlain, saying "...This is a business of projection and desiring people from afar ... so there has got to besometruth to it, in terms of, 'I could see myself with that person.' Because the leading man and lady are the person we want them to fall in love with, and most of the audience is straight. So for right now, we can only use straight actors." She continued, "I’ve never been turned down for a role because I’m gay... I’m a character actor, and that’s probably why. I don’t find Hollywood, in my own experience, to be homophobic. Have I ever been turned down? I don’t know because you never know when you don’t get something or why you didn’t get it. But I do think the straight folks will continue to play the straight roles."

Now Alan Cumming has entered the fray. In an interview this week with Hadley Freeman in The Guardian, Cumming is quoted as saying:

"'I think it's so mean-spirited... If you're living a lie, that's not healthy, and I think it is really irresponsible of [Chamberlain] and Rupert to say these things.' But do they not have a point – that audiences don't seem able to accept actors who they know to be gay playing heterosexual lovers onscreen, and therefore their acting opportunities are instantly limited?

'But it's not about your work,' he says, scornfully biting out the last word. 'It's about how you exist as a person in the world, and the idea that your work is more important than you as a person is a horrible, horrible message. I always think about a little gay boy in Wisconsin or a little lesbian in Arkansas seeing someone like me, and if I cannot be open in my life, how on earth can they? Anyway, it's an academic question: how can you know [that coming out affects your career]? Some people get less work than others and it has nothing to do with sexuality.'"

2 comments:

It's only a matter of time before audiences accept known gay actors in heterosexual romantic roles. Look at Neil Patrick Harris. I (straight woman) would watch him in a hetero romantic role any time, whether it's his usual comic shtick or something more serious. Also, there are increasing romantic roles for actors playing gay characters. It's getting better and it will continue to get better.

We've at least progressed to the point where out straight actors like Sean Penn, Robin Williams and Jim Carrey aren't afraid of playing gays in movies - Cliff Gorman (straight) often said that he felt his career had been badly hurt by playing an effeminate gay man in "Boys in the Band" as his first high-profile role, and he wasn't the only actor who expressed reservations about playing a gay character. Carrey can even tease Dave Letterman for asking homophobic questions about his performance while promoting "Phillip Morris." We will get there in time - but we will get there sooner if actors are willing to find the courage to challenge the status quo. Lynch is right about the business being focussed on the bottom line, but as long as actors are willing to remain complicit in the deception, the deception will continue.